TEHRAN – Iranian authorities have recently confiscated 13 historical coins from an antique dealer in Khomeini Shahr, central Isfahan province, a senior police official in charge of protecting cultural heritage has announced. 

A collection of coins, dating back to the Parthian era (247 BC – 224 CE), was found illegally kept on the premises of an antique dealer, ILNA quoted Mansour Jafarpur as saying on Friday. 

For further analysis, the coins are handed over to the city’s Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Department, the official added. 

The culprit was surrendered to the judicial system for further investigation, he noted. 

The Parthian Empire, also known as the Arsacid Empire, was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran. The Parthians largely adopted the art, architecture, religious beliefs, and royal insignia of their culturally heterogeneous empire, which encompassed Persian, Hellenistic, and regional cultures. At its height, the Parthian Empire stretched from the northern reaches of the Euphrates, in what is now central-eastern Turkey, to eastern Iran.

Parthian wealth obtained through lucrative trade networks resulted in substantial patronage of the arts, in particular, relief sculpture, statuary (large and small scale), architectural sculpture, metalwork, jewelry, and ceramics; coins with images of Parthian rulers form another important category of objects.

ABU/AFM